No one is brought up to be gay. Lacking the formal support systems—families, schools, churches—gay men rely on their folklore in interacting with one another and to relieve the pressures of belonging to a stigmatized group. Jokes and other forms of humor, language, and personal experience narratives help gay men to identify and communicate with one another—even in straight settings. explores the uses of gay men's folklore. Whether funny or sad, poignant or shocking, each story and joke contains messages, sometimes surprising ones. Goodwin decodes some of these messages to help us understand not only the gay subculture but also ourselves.